Daily News Archives
December 2008
12/31/2008 - New chest workout; New PR; 2008 is over--will you get in shape in 2009?
12/30/2008 - Leg workout; New Year's eve drinking?
12/29/2008 - Overtime; Cutting plans; Reminders.
12/28/2008 - Measurement Sunday!
12/27/2008 - Working out this morning.
12/26/2008 - Lots of fun yesterday; New picture/videos; Today's workout.
12/25/2008 - Merry Christmas!
12/24/2008 - Incredible strength gains; Might try a bench 1RM.
12/23/2008 - Reputation System poll; Yesterday's leg workout--wow.
12/22/2008 - $2,000 steroid challenge; AtLarge 15% off sale!
12/21/2008 - Weekly measurements and stats.
12/20/2008 - Delts/traps/calves workout; New photo; Getting in shape in 2009!
12/19/2008 - Good workout yesterday; New photo; The holidays.
12/18/2008 - 2006 vs. 2008 at same weight; Importance of keeping logs and records.
12/17/2008 - Great workout yesterday; Dedication.
12/16/2008 - Incredible leg workout; New picture; The beard stays.
12/15/2008 - Extending bulk by four weeks; January "100 Challenge".
12/14/2008 - Weekly measurements; Eleven week comparison to 2006 bulk.
12/13/2008 - Why scale weight is not important (photographic proof).
12/12/2008 - Great workout yesterday; New back photo; 26 new forum smilies added.
12/11/2008 - Feeling well-rested this morning; Enhanced feature for Bronze+ supporters.
12/10/2008 - Bit tired, but excellent workout; New picture; Food log update.
12/09/2008 - Almost puked; The history of JSF.
12/08/2008 - Leg day; Just three weeks of bulking to go.
12/07/2008 - Weekly measurements.
12/06/2008 - New delts/traps/calves workout; New photo.
12/05/2008 - Yesterday's workout; Forum reputation system active--I want to hear from you.
12/04/2008 - Back feeling good for today's workout; Forum reputation system?
12/03/2008 - "Controversial" chest/triceps workout and discussion; New photo.
12/02/2008 - New leg workout for the last four weeks of my bulk.
12/01/2008 - Monthly pictures; New JSF Sponsor!
December 31, 2008
Yesterday's workout--my final workout of 2008--rocked! Here's the new chest and triceps workout I did yesterday, and what I'll be doing for the final four weeks of my bulk:
CHEST
- 3 x 10-12 Flat bench press
- 3 x 10-12 Incline bench press
- 2 x failure/failure/failure Incline dumbbell flyes (triple drop sets)
- 1 x failure Chest dips (burnout set)
TRICEPS
- 3 x 10-12 Close-grip bench press
- 3 x 10-12 Flat dumbbell skullcrushers
- 1 x failure/failure/failure Strap tricep pressdowns (triple drop set)
- 1 x failure Bench dips (burnout set)
The last time I did flat bench press (in late November) I tied my all-time best weight for reps (3 sets of 10-12 reps)--and I did it weighing over 20 pounds less than I did when I set that particular personal record back in 2006. With another month of hard training under my belt, when I stepped into the gym yesterday I knew that I was going to smash that record. I added 10 pounds to my all-time best, and did 3 sets of 12/11/9 reps. What a fantastic way to end 2008!
It's hard to believe that 2008 is already gone. For many people the New Year represents an opportunity to start fresh and make positive changes in their lives. One of the most common (if not the most common) New Year resolutions is to lose fat and get in shape. With so many people resolving to improve their health and personal appearances, you'd think more people would actually be successful. Despite all the good intentions, every year the obesity epidemic gets worse and worse.
Obese people who continue to stuff their faces while reassuring themselves with hollow platitudes will eventually have their lifestyles catch up to them. Obesity is dangerously unhealthy, it costs our society a lot of money, it's selfish and it's unattractive. If you are fat and don't do something about it, then you are putting your health, and even your life, at risk.
I want 2009 to be the year that you finally make a real, permanent lifestyle change. Forget about fad diets and all of that nonsense. The first thing you've got to do is put the desire for instant gratification out of your mind. If you want to permanently lose fat and get in shape then it's going to take hard work and a lot of effort. The reward to doing it the "hard" way (the RIGHT way) is you won't ever be fat again. Please start educating yourself by reading the "sticky" threads in the Beginner's forum (the threads that are "stuck" at the very top). I encourage you to create a free account on the forum and get involved with our friendly and helpful community. We warmly welcome new members of all experience levels.
December 30, 2008
As I mentioned yesterday, the workouts I'll be doing for the final four weeks of my 2008 bulk will have less volume than most of the workouts I've been doing over the previous 13 weeks, but will be performed with even more intensity. Yesterday's leg workout was relatively brief (less than 40 minutes from start to finish), but very intense and very challenging.
Here's the workout:
- 3 x 8-10 Squats
- 3 x 12-15 Dumbbell lunges
- 2 x Failure/failure/failure - Leg extensions (triple drop sets)
- 2 x Failure/failure/failure - Lying leg curls (triple drop sets)
As you can see, I've returned to squatting for the first time since pulling a muscle in my back around five or six weeks ago. I went very heavy, and didn't feel any back pain at all. Once I made the choice to do heavy squats again, I knew I had to proceed with 100% confidence. Apprehension and timidness have no place in the gym; those feelings lead to poor workouts, and even injury. I must admit, however, that when I racked the bar after the final set of squats I felt a mixture of extreme satisfaction and a little bit of relief.
I was able to go significantly heavier on the DB lunges as compared to the last time I did them. The quad drop set Bulgarians I did over the past five weeks increased my leg strength, muscle endurance and cardiovascular fitness level quite a bit.
I received an email yesterday asking if I'd considered that my extended bulk now falls over New Year's eve, and if I would be allowing myself to drink to "celebrate" the new year. The answer is no--I'd not considered that. The reason I didn't think about New Year's eve and drinking is because it's irrelevant. No, I will not be drinking on New Year's eve. What is with this tradition of getting drunk to start off the new year? I'm going to wake up on the first day of 2009 well-rested, clear-headed and feeling great; I can think of no better way to start off the new year.
December 29, 2008
I'm in overtime now: it's week 14 of my planned 13-week bulk. I'm going to work as hard as I can to make the extra four weeks I've added to my 2008 bulk extremely productive. This week I'll be changing all my workouts around, and these are the workouts I'll be using until the end of my bulk. I'll be posting the new workouts all this week. These workouts will have less volume than most of the other workouts I've done on this bulk. After 13 weeks of rather high volume lifting, what I'd like to do now is reduce the volume a bit while increasing the intensity. My general plan is to use some of my favorite mass-building exercises and keep the workouts simple, short and ultra-intense. You can expect to see a lot of compounds in these workouts: barbell bench press, deadlifts, squats, barbell rows, overhead press, cleans, etc...
I've been thinking a bit about what I'm going to do after my bulk is over. My bulk ends on January 25, 2009, and the first thing I'm going to do is take one week completely off from training (January 26 - February 1). Starting on Monday, February 2, I will begin to eat at maintenance levels and will train hard for the rest of the month. I will start my 2009 cut on March 2, 2009. Starting my cut in March is a bit of a departure for me, but I'm going to need a month after this bulk to sort of reset. I simply can't come off an ultra-intense 17-week bulk and go straight into a protracted 4 or 5 month cut or I'll lose it.
A couple of reminders this morning...
The Reputation System voting will end tomorrow morning at 7:00 AM EST. Thanks to everyone who voiced their opinion and voted!
Time is running out on the AtLarge 15% off sale! Don't miss out on this one, as you will definitely not see discounts like this again for a long, long time.
Finally, the new year is mere days away. I want you to to make all of your fitness goals a reality in 2009. You can do it! The "100 Challenges" are are great way to keep yourself on track. Please take part! Details are below...
December 28, 2008
It's time for my usual Sunday tape measurements and body fat reading.
My scale weight this morning is 214.4 pounds. That's just a .4 pound gain over the past week, but you may recall that for some reason last Sunday I was holding about 2 pounds of water for some odd reason. So that's a 3 pound gain in two weeks, which is right on my average. It all evens out.
My total scale weight gain on this bulk (after 13 of 17 weeks) is 19.4 pounds. That's an average weekly gain of 1.49 pounds. By comparison, thirteen weeks into my 2006 bulk I'd gained a total of 30.6 pounds, which is an average weight gain of 2.35 pounds per week.
My body fat reading this morning is 13.1% (as measured by the Fat Track PRO Digital Body Fat Calipers). That's identical to last week's reading. Looks like I survived the holidays pretty well. I didn't deprive myself, but I limited my cheat foods to Christmas day and I didn't go crazy.
This week's tape measurements (as measured by the MyoTape) are all slightly higher than last week's readings, but I didn't gain a full quarter of an inch anywhere. That's actually not surprising because last week I added a quarter of an inch to every single body part except calves. There were improvements this past week, but I always round down to the nearest quarter of an inch for my official stats. The good news is my waist measurement didn't change over the holidays!
Total measurement progress thirteen weeks into my bulk is as follows: I've added over an inch to my forearms, over 1.75 inches to my arms, over 2.25 inches to my quads, one inch to my calves and over 2.25 inches to my chest. My waist size has increased just over one inch over the past thirteen weeks.
The stats I've presented today would have been my ending bulk stats had I not elected to extend my bulk by four weeks. Everything from here on out will be a nice "bonus"!
All my stats, past and present, can always be found on the stats page.
December 27, 2008
I decided to take yesterday off from training, and pushed my usual Friday workout (delt/traps/calves) off until today. I'm glad that I did that, as we had family over and had a really fun day hanging out together. I think I'm going to do my workout this morning instead of my usual afternoon workout time so that I can have the rest of the day cleared to do whatever I want to do.
I've lost about a pound of the post-Christmas dinner bloat, but I can still feel the tightness in my joints from the remaining water I'm holding. Over the past 13 weeks I've only had two cheat meals (Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners), and I can honestly say that I have not craved junk food at all during this time. In fact, both times that I have gone off my usual all-natural diet have left me feeling sluggish and less than 100%. I don't like feeling like that at all. I will have no problem sticking to my normal clean diet plan for the remainder of my bulk.
I don't seem to be in the mood for writing this morning, so I'm just going to go get ready for my workout now. I'll be back tomorrow with my weekly stats and measurements, so see you then!
December 26, 2008
We had a lot of fun yesterday! I ate a lot, but I didn't go crazy. I never felt overstuffed or uncomfortable. As expected, however, I am holding a couple pounds of water this morning. We didn't really take many pictures yesterday. We took some pictures and video of the dogs early in the day, but then the camera was placed aside and we just sort of forgot about it. I put a Christmas video of Turtle and a new picture of Loki in my photo journal. Also, I've had some requests for a video overview of my home theater and theater lobby, so yesterday I posted a home theater and theater lobby tour that I shot on Christmas eve. The tour is divided into three parts. All the new media can all be found in this post.
Lisa and I both have today off from work, and Lisa's parents decided to spend the night so they are here this morning. I think I'm going to hang out and watch movies with the family today. Depending on how late Lisa's parents stay, I may push my delts/traps/calves workout off until tomorrow (which I normally have off from training).
It's hard to believe that today would have been the end of my 2008 bulk if I'd not decided to extend it! Even if my bulk did end today, I would be very happy with the progress I've made over the past 13 weeks. That said, I know I made a good choice when I extended my bulk by four weeks. I'm extremely excited about what I'm going to accomplish with another month of hard training and big eating!
Lisa's been bragging about how good my bulking breakfast is--especially the roasted red potatoes. As I type this the entire family is sitting in the next room waiting for me to finish this update so I can cook breakfast. I guess I'd better get in the kitchen and get things going!
December 25, 2008
Merry Christmas!
Today should be a lot of fun. This morning after breakfast (and we open presents, of course) I'll be doing my back and biceps workout. I normally don't workout this early in the day, but we've got family coming over around noon and I want to have the workout done and out of the way before they get here. No excuses!
As for my diet, today is one of only two free days that I'll be having on this bulk (the other was Thanksgiving). I'll eat my usual diet for meals #1, #2 and #3, but then I'll relax my diet for the remainder of the day. We've got some fantastic meatballs, crackers & lobster spread and crab/cheese h'ordeurves to munch on this afternoon, and for dinner I'm making a herb pork roast along with roasted root vegetables (potatoes, whole garlic cloves, carrots, onions and olive oil). I really have not been craving sweets at all, but I may have a small slice of apple pie for desert if that sounds good to me.
Have a wonderful day!
VOTE! A couple of weeks ago I implemented a new feature on the forum: the User Reputation System. Now that it has been running for a couple of weeks, I want the JSF community to decide if we should keep this new feature. Personally I like it, and I think it's added to our community. This is a simple YES or NO poll. The poll will run for about a week, and in the end majority will rule. Your vote is completely anonymous. Please take a moment to vote here.
December 24, 2008
Yesterday I worked my chest and triceps, and I performed the workout as if it was the final chest/triceps workout in my bulk. I added weight to every exercise, but damned if I could tell: I equaled or surpassed last week's reps. Right now I'm over 20 pounds lighter than I was at the end of my 2006 bulk, but I'm stronger now than I was back then on a significant number of lifts.
Speaking of strength gains, last night after my workout I looked back at my very first 2008 chest/triceps bulking workout log. In that particular workout I was doing triple drop set cable crossovers. For the past four weeks I've been doing quad drop set cable crossovers, and the cool thing is the weight I used on the final (fourth) drop last night was equal to what I was using on the very first set (before dropping the weight) just three months ago. I strip off 10 pounds per drop, so that's a pretty good improvement for just three months.
Back on November 26th I equaled my best ever bench press performance (for reps), and I set this PR at a much lower body weight (over 20 pounds less). Next week when I switch all my workouts around I'm going to incorporate flat bench back into my workout, and I expect to absolutely shatter my working set PR now that I've got another month of hard training under my belt. I'd love to finally do a 300-pound bench press (and I'm positive I could bench that weight for at least 1 or 2 reps), but I'm worried about blowing my bad shoulder out. I'd be pretty pissed at myself if I had to end my bulk over an "ego lift". I may try it at the very end of my bulk. We'll see how my shoulder feels. It's always annoyed me that I can't say I've ever pressed 300 pounds, because I know I could. I hate my shoulders.
I've got the day off from training today, and my body will appreciate the rest. Lisa gets off from work early today, so I'm going to try and finish up my work by mid-afternoon so I can enjoy Christmas Eve.
Oh, one last thing. The Reputation System vote has been astonishingly close. As I type this it's quite literally tied. Your vote could be the deciding vote, so please take a moment to cast your ballot. Details below...
VOTE! A couple of weeks ago I implemented a new feature on the forum: the User Reputation System. Now that it has been running for a couple of weeks, I want the JSF community to decide if we should keep this new feature. Personally I like it, and I think it's added to our community. This is a simple YES or NO poll. The poll will run for about a week, and in the end majority will rule. Your vote is completely anonymous. Please take a moment to vote here.
December 23, 2008
A couple of weeks ago I implemented a new feature on the forum: the User Reputation System. Now that it has been running for a couple of weeks, I want the JSF community to decide if we should keep this new feature. Personally I like it, and I think it's added to our community. This is a simple YES or NO poll. The poll will run for about a week, and in the end majority will rule. Your vote is completely anonymous. Please take a moment to vote here.
Yesterday's leg workout was the final time I'll be performing that particular workout on this bulk. That workout is probably the toughest leg workout I've ever done. As a sort of fond "send off", I decided to push myself further than ever and upped the weights by 10 pounds on every single exercise (on the triple drop set Bulgarians I added 10 pounds per dumbbell on the starting set, and 5 pounds per dumbbell on the two drop sets). I was also very strict with my rest intervals: 1 minute between sets, 2 minutes between exercises. Out of curiosity I decided to wear a heart rate monitor on the Bulgarians: at the start of the first drop my heart rate was nearly maxed at 191 BPM; at the end of the first drop it was maxed at 194 BPM, and it stayed pegged at 194 BPM during the entire final drop--and this was just the first of three triple drop sets! The minute of rest between each set felt more like 10 seconds, and then I got up off the floor and did it again. And again. Bulgarians (even standard sets) are not just an incredible exercise for the legs and glutes, they are also one heck of an HIIT cardio workout! Triple drop set Bulgarians will truly put your inner strength to the test.
December 22, 2008
Ah, it wouldn't really be a bulk without the usual flood of steroid accusations! The "steroid" emails started trickling in around six or seven weeks ago, and now I'm getting them on a fairly regular basis. This is nothing new: every year since 2003 (when I looked liked I'd just escaped from a prison camp), I've been accused of using steroids or other illegal performance enhancing drugs. Unfortunately steroid use is very common in today's world, especially amongst professional athletes, but everyone denies using them. So yeah, I can totally see why people are distrustful--especially those who don't know firsthand what can be accomplished naturally with hard work and dedication over many years.
Once again, I'd like to state for the record that I have never, ever used steroids (I use the generic word "steroids" to include all illegal performance enhancing drugs). Further, I have had an ongoing $2,000 "steroid" challenge since 2004. The challenge is simple: I'll take a drug test on ZERO notice at any time. You chose the time and location for the drug test, pay for the test and my travel (if testing location is not local to me) and if I test positive for any illegal substances I'll pay you double your money back and return all your expenses (including airfare, hotel, drug test, etc). Further, the results of the test will be published on the front page, the forum and permanently added to my FAQ. Bring a video camera, we'll put it on Youtube, too.
Some people think that I should simply ignore accusations of steroid use, but I disagree. I think it's important that people know what can be accomplished with nothing but hard work and dedication, and I want to make it abundantly clear that I do not use drugs--period! The last time I used any sort of illegal substance was on March 5, 2003, and that was the day before I quit smoking marijuana forever. That is the God's honest truth.
Well, this is week 13 of my bulk, and it would have been the final week of my 2008 bulk had I not decided to extend it for 4 additional weeks. I'm really glad that I'm looking at five more weeks of bulking instead of just one: my gut is telling me that it was the right move. I still have a lot more in me, and I expect to make some nice additional gains over those four "extra" weeks.
Wow, AtLarge is having a coveted 15% off sale! These 15% off sales are extremely rare, so now is the absolute best time to stock up! Details are immediately below this update...
|
AtLarge Nutrition - 15% Off Holiday Sale! It's the holiday season again. Tis the season of giving, and AtLarge Nutrition, LLC is ready to give to our customers (old and new) with our BIGGEST SALE IN YEARS!!! Now through December 31st, save BIG on all AtLarge orders! Simply type the word "holidays" (without the quotes) in the discount coupon code section during checkout and save 15%!!! AtLarge sells an award winning lineup of the highest quality and most effective sports supplements in the industry. If you haven't tried us yet, now is the perfect time. If you are already one of our many loyal customers, save BIG and stock up for the New Year. From our family to yours, have a great holiday season and a wonderful New Year!
Daniel Clough and Chris Mason |
December 21, 2008
It's Sunday and time for my weekly tape measurements and body fat reading. If I had to sum up this week's progress in a sentence, it would be "Weird, but very good!"
My scale weight this morning is 214.0 pounds. That's a whopping 2.6 pound gain over the past week. That's the "weird" part. I woke up yesterday weighing in a full two pounds more than the day before, and this morning I'm still at 214 pounds. I remain convinced that this sudden weight gain is water weight (I know what water retention feels like, and I can feel it through my entire body), but I have no idea how I could be retaining water right now--my diet has not changed at all! As I mentioned in yesterday's update, I wonder if some of the very mild flu symptoms I've been feeling the past couple of days have something to do with it? It will be interesting to see what my weight does over the next few days....
My 2008 bulk total scale weight gain (after 12 of 17 weeks) is 19 pounds. That's an average weekly gain of 1.58 pounds. At the 12 week mark of my 2006 bulk I'd gained a total of 28.1 pounds (an average of 2.34 pounds per week). I'm pretty sure that ~9 pound of additional weight in 2006 was all fat. That's a pretty significant difference when you consider that 9 pounds would take me about a month to lose on a fairly aggressive 2 pound per week cutting diet.
My body fat reading this morning is 13.1% (as measured by the Fat Track PRO Digital Body Fat Calipers). We took the measurement twice this morning to be sure. That's a very small jump from last week's 12.9% reading (which I "officially" called 13%).
This week's tape measurements (as measured by the MyoTape) were fantastic! I literally added a quarter of an inch to each and every measurement except my calves! That's the "good" part!
Total measurement progress looks like this: over the past twelve weeks I've added an inch to my forearms, 1.75 inches to my arms, 2.25 inches to my quads, one inch to my calves and 2.25 inches to my chest. My waist size has only increased one inch over the past three months, and that is something I'm very happy about (at the 12 week mark of my 2006 bulk I'd added over three inches to my waist!)
All my stats, past and present, can always be found on the stats page.
December 20, 2008
The completion of yesterday's workout (delts/calves/traps) closes out the 12th week of my 2008 bulk, and what a workout it was! After my workout I took one new progress picture of my delts and traps and put it in my journal.
My scale weight jumped from 212 pounds yesterday morning to 214 pounds this morning. This is extremely odd, as my diet has been 100% on-point and I shouldn't be holding water. Nevertheless, this morning I can feel the water weight and bloat through my entire body. I have no idea what brought this on. About the only thing I can think of that is out of the ordinary is that Lisa has been sick for the past week, and this morning I can feel a little tickle in my throat and some stuffiness in my head. These symptoms are mild to the point of being complete non-issues, but perhaps the water weight is related? It's the only explanation I can come up with.
Those of you who are planning to get in shape after the holidays would be wise to have your plans locked and loaded well in advance. Don't wait until after the new year to figure out what you want to do. My suggestion is to start educating yourself right now, come up with a solid plan and make sure you have all the things you need to execute your plan (foods, equipment, gym membership, etc.) ready to go. The JSF forums are a fantastic FREE resource that can provide you with all the information and support you need to reach your goals. I highly recommend that you take a few minutes to create an account and join our thriving community. We can help you make 2009 the year you finally "do it", but it is up to you to take the first step!
December 19, 2008
I had a good back workout yesterday, but it took me a little longer to complete than I would have liked. I let a some of the rest intervals drag on a bit longer than I normally would. The little bit of extra rest did help me to move more weight for more reps on almost every exercise. I'm especially happy with my hang cleans and bent-over barbell rows: I've added 20 pounds to each of those lifts over the past 2 weeks, and next week I'll be adding 10 more pounds to both of those.
I posted one new photo in my journal yesterday, another back double-biceps shot.
Speaking of my back, it has felt 100% for quite some time now (as most of you know, I pulled a muscle in my lower back a few weeks ago). I'm definitely ready to do heavy squats and deads again, so I'll be working those into my training program for the final four weeks of my bulk, which starts a week from this coming Monday. I'm very excited about doing deads again--yet another reason I'm glad that I extended my bulk for another month.
The holidays are here, and this is a time when many people slack off and make excuses. That's why it's so inspiring to see so many people on forum right now working their butts off, eating right, training hard, helping others and refusing to make excuses. You can enjoy the holidays without turning them into a diet and training free fall. Be sensible, and don't lose focus on your health and training!
December 18, 2008
Out of pure curiosity, this morning I was looking back at my old bulking measurements and scale weights (my body fat measurement back then were way off and useless), with a focus on my my 2006 bulk. During my 2006 bulk I reached 212 pounds on October 9th. I thought it would be interesting to compare my measurements from that bulk to my measurements today at the same weight (211.8 pounds this morning)...
Waist: 33.75" (2006) vs. 33.5" (2008). This is a good indication that I have more lean mass now than I did in 2006 at the same weight.
Hips: 40" (2006) vs. 40.25" (2008). My glute development is responsible for this increase. More specifiably, the Bulgarian split squats!
Forearm: 13.75" (2006) vs. 13.5" (2008). Actually my forearms were just a hair below 13.75" last Sunday (when my current measurements were taken), so I'm going to call this even.
Arms: 17.5" (2006) vs. 17.5" (2008). Dead even. In 2006 I was putting a lot of training emphasis on my arms, but not so this year. So I'm happy with this.
Quads: 25.75" (2006) vs. 25.75" (2008). Wow, another identical measurement.
Calves: 17.25" (2006) vs. 17" (2008). A quarter inch difference in favor of 2006. I need to work my calves harder!
Chest: 43.75" (2006) vs. 44" (2008). Awesome! My chest has received a lot of extra attention this year, and it appears to be working.
I'm pleased with these numbers. I'm almost positive that I'm presently at a lower body fat percentage now than I was at the same weight in 2006, and yet my muscle measurements are greater, or equal to, my 2006 measurements in almost every case. In other words, I'm putting on more muscle and less fat this time around.
Muscle memory has played a non-trivial role in my gains so far on this bulk, but I suspect that those days are drawing to a close. While measurements at the end of my 2006 bulk were quite a bit larger than what they are now, fat and bloat were responsible for a good portion of that (my waist was 36.5" and my body fat was 19% when I finished). This time around I'll continue to focus on adding quality lean mass, and not just "size".
On a related note, I can't stress enough how important it is to keep records of your progress. It's not hard, and the data is as interesting as it is useful. I love being able to go back and do comparisons like the one I did in today's update. I've got photographs, measurements, food logs, training logs and scale weight data from early 2003 through today. All this data has proven to be invaluable when it comes to evaluating my progress. If you are just starting out, I strongly recommend that you not ignore this advice. If you do, I assure you that one day you will regret it.
December 17, 2008
I had a very long, stressful day of work yesterday, but once I got in the gym I put all that aside and had a great chest/triceps workout. At this point I'm totally convinced that lack of calories, and not "burn out", was to blame for the couple of workouts in which I had to fight through some lethargy.
Weight training never fails to elevate my mood and clear my mind. Even if I don't particularly feel like training, as long as I force myself to get in the gym and do it I'm always glad that I did. Sometimes we all have feeling of "Oh, I don't really want to train today, I... [insert lame excuse here]." Learning to get over that first hurdle is one of the more important skills you need to have if you want to be successful in reaching your goals. My advice is to never allow yourself to skip a workout unless you have a legitimate reason. What constitutes a good reason to miss a workout? A hard day at the office is not a good reason. Feeling tired is not a good reason. Losing a limb in an industrial accident earns you a pass. I like to think of it in these terms: every workout I complete makes me mentally and physically stronger, and brings me closer to my goals; every workout I skip is a lost opportunity that I will never, ever get back. I'm not overstating--those are facts.
Train hard and have a great day!
December 16, 2008
Yesterday I had the best leg workout of this bulk--period. It was one of those workouts where everything just flowed. Last week's leg workout was also very good, but I felt like puking towards the end of it. This week I added weight to every exercise, and no matter how tough things got I just wanted more. I tore up the Bulgarian split squat drop sets like never before. I think upping my calories is part of the reason my workout was so good, but I also think that yesterday when I committed to extending my bulk by four weeks it provided me with a nice psychological boost. I've never worked harder in the gym than I am right now, but I'm also having a hell of a lot of fun.
I have not taken a picture of my quads yet on this bulk, so I decided to take one yesterday. You can check it out here. Because my body fat is rather high right now at 13%, my quads are not showing a great deal of definition/separation. I was able to improve that slightly by sitting down and doing a leg extension as I snapped the picture, so that's what you're seeing there.
As most of you know by now, I said that I was going to grow my beard out through my entire bulk. It's already looking very unkempt at this point (over 2 months without a shave or trim). When Lisa read the news that I was extending my bulk and saw what I said in my journal about my beard, the first thing she said was, "Wait. You're mean keeping your beard?" When I told her that I was she said, "Well, at least you can trim it now." I said, "Er, no, actually. I said I would not shave or trim during my bulk. My bulk has been extended." This news did not go over too well at all ("You look ridiculous" accompanied by a sarcastic gesture mocking the fullness of my beard was one of her kinder moments). I'm standing firm on this. The beard stays!
December 15, 2008
I've only got two weeks left in my planned 2008 bulk, but something in the back of my mind has been itching the hell out of me for the past few weeks. This morning I decided to scratch that itch; this is my announcement that I've decided to extend my bulk for an additional four weeks. Man, it feels great just to finally type that! I know I have more in me, and I just don't want to stop right now. So, my bulk will now end on January 25, 2009 (17 total weeks). I'll take the last week in January off from lifting, and will start my cut sometime in February (I have not decided exactly when).
I've opened the January 2009 "100 Challenge" for entry. This is your chance to get 2009 off to a fantastic start by making a public commitment to your fitness program and then holding yourself accountable. In November we had ONE person who completed the challenge. Pardon me for pointing out the obvious, but that's pathetic. I don't want to see a bunch of abandoned entries, deleted posts and lame excuses in January. In other words, don't bother signing up unless you are going to see the challenge through until the end. I don't expect anyone to be perfect, but I do expect the entrants of these challenges to at least live up to their commitments and complete them. The number of points you have at the end of the month is not nearly as important as the accomplishment of living up to your word and FINISHING. Come on, people--get fired up!
Registration for the January 2009 "100 Challenge" is now underway! Your Official Challenge post must be made by 7:00 AM (EST) on January 1, 2009 if you plan to participate--NO EXCEPTIONS! To participate, you must be a member of the forum. If you are not a member, simply create a free account. It can take up to 24 hours for your account to be activated, so don't wait until the last minute to register! For all the details, official rules and sample entry data, just head over to the January 2009 "100 Challenge" thread on the forum. If you are ready to work hard and want to challenge yourself in a fun and competitive environment, then please take part!
December 14, 2008
It's Sunday and time for my weekly tape measurements and body fat reading!
My scale weight this morning is 211.4 pounds. That's just slightly more than a half-pound gain over the past week. I'm surprised by this, because I upped my daily caloric intake by over 500 last weekend. However, as we discussed yesterday, scale weight is by far the least important instrument in our body composition toolboxes, so let's examine the rest of the data before making any judgment...
My 2008 bulk total scale weight gain (with 11 of the planned 13 weeks in the books) is 16.4 pounds. That's an average weekly gain of 1.49 pounds. For those who are curious how this number compares to my 2006 bulk, back in 2006 at the 11 week mark I'd gained a total of 24.1 pounds (an average of 2.19 pounds per week). My body fat measurement back in 2006 was way off, and all but useless (this was before I started using the 7-point caliper); however, my tape measurements were very accurate, and highlight an interesting difference between these two bulks. After 11 weeks of bulking in 2006 my waist was a full two inches larger then than it is now, and my hips were 1.5 inches larger. In retrospect, it's not like I need to see these numbers to know that I put on way too much fat back in 2006 (the 50 pounds of fat I had to lose to get back down to 6% body fat was enough proof of that, believe me), but it is nice to see that I learned from that mistake and I'm staying relatively lean this go-round.
Moving on, my body fat reading this morning is 12.9% (as measured by the Fat Track PRO Digital Body Fat Calipers). That's actually a hair lower than last week's 13% reading, but variances in caliper measurement due to the human factor are normal. I'm going to "officially" call it 13% since I'm certainly not losing fat right now.
This week's tape measurements (as measured by the MyoTape) show that I've added a quarter inch to my quads and a quarter inch to my calves. My arms and chest grew, but not quite a full quarter of an inch. My hips and waist measurements are exactly the same as last week.
Overall measurement progress looks like this: over the past eleven weeks I've added three quarters of an inch to my forearms, over 1.5 inches to my arms, 2 inches to my quads, an inch to my calves and over 2 inches to my chest.
All my stats, past and present, can always be found on the stats page.
I took in around 4,000 additional calories last week, and I did not gain any measurable amount of fat. Clearly the muscle I've added is requiring a considerable amount of fuel just to maintain it. I did show some muscle growth last week, however, so that's good. I'm tempted to up my carbs a bit more, but I think I'm going to hold off on that for right now.
December 13, 2008
It's finally Saturday! Man, this has been one long, busy and intense week. I am really looking forward to a couple of days off from everything. I actually have quite a bit to do today, but hopefully I can get it all done by early afternoon so I can relax. With the exception of my afternoon supplemental traps workout, I have tomorrow completely off.
Christy ("J_W") started what I think is an awesome thread on the forum earlier this morning. The goal of her thread is to demonstrate (with pictures) why scale weight is all but meaningless for individuals who lift weights. Blunt instruments such as the bathroom scale and BMI (Body Mass Index) are only useful for average, sedentary people. If, however, you are like most JSF members, then you train with weights (and if you don't, WHY NOT?) on a regular basis; that means you are not "average". The methods commonly used by the general populace to determine how "fat" they are don't have much use to you, the weight trained individual. Pictures, the mirror, tape measurements and body fat readings are the most useful tools of our trade--NOT the scale.
So, if you still live and die by the number on the scale, give J_W's thread a good hard look. If you've made your own body re-composition changes, then please take part and post your pictures!
Well, I'd better get started on my extensive "to-do" list. The sooner I start, the sooner I'll be done. Enjoy your day!
December 12, 2008
As you may recall, I mentioned that I've been fighting through some fatigue for the past couple of workouts. It was my hope that an increase in calories would help with that, and the extra food sure seems to be doing the trick! Yesterday my energy levels were extremely high all day long, and my back and biceps workout was outstanding! I managed to increase the weight and/or reps on every exercise, and I finished the workout a little over five minutes faster than last week. It was a very productive, intense and satisfying workout!
I realized the other day that I've failed to take any pictures of my back on this bulk. I took one yesterday, and it can be found in yesterday's post-workout entry to my media journal. A little further down in the thread I posted a 2007 Vs. 2008 back comparison photo.
You may have noticed that over the past few weeks I've been making some enhancements and improvements to the forum, such as the Reputation System and enhanced Youtube support. I get a lot of requests to add new "smilies" to the forum, and so yesterday I added 26 new smilies. I hope you enjoy them!
Well, I've got a lot to do today (including what I think is going to be a fantastic delts/traps/calves workout!), so I'd better wrap up and get the ball rolling. Thanks for stopping by!
December 11, 2008
I had yesterday off from training, and I think the rest did me a lot of good. This morning I'm feeling very alert and energetic, so I expect to have a great back and biceps workout later today. I am also seem to be responding well to my increased caloric intake (check out yesterday's update for details and the new food log).
Those of you with Bronze and higher JSF forum memberships have had the ability to embed Youtube videos into your posts for quite some time. As most of you know by now, Youtube now supports much higher quality video than the default (which is quite poor), and they also have support for widescreen video. Documentation on integrating these new features into embedded forum video is rather scarce right now, however last night forum member "MannishBoy" pointed me to another forum that had successfully implimented these cool new Youtube features. Thankfully there was also a link to a technical document that outlined what changes needed to be made to the forum code to take full advantage of HQ video and widescreen. I completed the changes and testing last night, and so I'm pleased to announce this enhancement is now available and fully functional for all Bronze+ supporting members! The best part is you don't have to do anything differently to take advantage of these new features: add the youtube video to your post as you always do; if HQ video is available, then the software will automatically embed the HQ version. Non-widescreen (4:3) videos will be shown "window boxed" (black bars to the left and right of the video), so their aspect ratios will not be distorted. Another cool side-effect of this change is that all existing embeded videos on the forum will now automatically play the HQ version if it's available.
Here's a video I shot of my dogs last night. They are upstairs in the theater lobby scarfing down their favorite food, popcorn. This embedded Youtube video is shown in High Quality resolution and demonstrates the enhanced Youtube features.
Enjoy, and thanks for supporting JSF and the JSF forums!
December 10, 2008
I think 10+ weeks off all-out, intense training is starting to catch up to me. Over the past week I've had some really great workouts, but a few of those workouts required me to dig deep in order to fight past fatigue. I suppose this is something I knew would happen eventually. It's all but impossible to sustain the levels of intensity I've been putting out indefinitely. With just 2.5 weeks to go on this years bulk, I know I have it in me to push past this and finish strong!
Despite having to fight through some feelings of lethargy, I really did have a fantastic chest/triceps workout yesterday. I upped the weight on every exercise, and in most cases still managed to meet, or even exceed, the number of reps I did last week. Check out my forum photo journal for a new picture.
Part of the lethargy problem might be that it's time for me to up my daily caloric intake. My weight gains have slowed, and I think my body needs more fuel to grow. Actually, I came to this conclusion over the weekend, and since then have upped my caloric intake by around 500 calories per day (to just under 3,600). I finally got around to updating my food log this morning. You can check out my complete 2008 bulking food log here.
No training today, and obviously the rest will be much appreciated! I do have a lot of work to get done, so I'd better get my day started. Thanks for stopping by--have a great day!
December 9, 2008
Well, all I can say after yesterday's leg workout is I'm very glad I only have to do it two more times. That is the toughest leg workout I've ever done--end of story. I've got a very strong stomach when it comes to physical exertion; I have never in my life puked from working out, but I came closer than I ever have yesterday. After the three triple-drop sets of Bulgarians I had to fight back the very strong urge to let my guts go. The whole time I was doing the final exercise (lying leg curls), I seriously thought I was going to lose it. Thankfully I made it through the workout without making a horrible mess of my gym.
After the workout I had to force myself to wash down 15g of dry EAA powder (which tastes horrible under the best of circumstances) with a huge glass of cherry-flavored RESULTS. Then a protein shake. I don't know how I got it all down, but somehow I did.
Today is chest and triceps, and I'm really looking forward to this workout (here's the workout and discussion). My chest and triceps have each increased in size and strength a great deal over the past few months, and I'm absolutely loving it! Also, my shoulders have not given me an ounce of trouble on this bulk, and that's been a huge relief. It's been real nice to slide under the bar and not have to worry about my shoulders.
Those of you who have not been visiting the site since its inception might be interested in learning about the history of JSF and its early evolution. "HevyMetal" started a thread on the forum wondering who the first poster was, and the discussion sort of evolved from there. A few posts down I decided to contruct a time line of the major events that took place over that pivotal first year. You can check out the thread here.
December 8, 2008
I love that my leg workout is the first workout of the week. I always feel well-rested after a couple of days off from training (well, almost off--I do a short supplemental traps workout on Sunday afternoon), and that extra rest always seems to translate into a lot of energy in the weight room.
I was starting to worry that my legs were not going to be fully recovered from last week's leg workout (they were still slightly sore yesterday),
but the soreness is finally gone this morning. This new leg workout that
I came up with for the final four weeks of my bulk is extremely challenging, to put it mildly. Thinking about those Bulgarian split squat
triple drop sets I'll be grinding out later today has me feeling simultaneously excited and frightened. 
I can't believe that there's just three weeks of bulking left to go. That's just three more workouts per muscle group (a few more for traps). Believe me, I'll be thinking about that when I'm lifting. I'm going to push myself harder than ever over the next few weeks. Every single rep is important!
I've got a heck of a lot to accomplish today, so I'm going to wrap this up and get to work. Train hard, and have a great day!
Please take a few minutes to aquaint yourself with the new reputation system that we are trying out on the forum. I really want to know what you think, so don't be shy--speak up and post your opinion!
December 7, 2008
It's Sunday, and that means it's time for my weekly tape measurements and body fat reading!
My scale weight this morning is 210.8 pounds. That's identical to last Sunday's weight, however last Sunday my weight was artificialy inflated due to water retention from Thanksgiving. My total weight gain over the past 2 weeks is 2.4 pounds (1.2 pounds per week), and that's right on target.
I've now completed 10 of my planned 13 bulking weeks, and so far I've gained a total of 15.8 pounds for an average weekly gain of 1.58 pounds. Interesting side note: at the 10-week mark of my 2006 bulk I'd gained a total of 22.6 pounds. While my body fat estimates were way off back then (this was before I started using the 7-point caliper), I can alsmost guarantee that the nearly 7 pounds of additional weight were 100% fat (and also some of the "base" 15.8 pounds, of course!)
Speaking of fat, let's check out this weeks body fat reading...
My body fat reading this morning is 13.0% (as measured by the Fat Track PRO Digital Body Fat Calipers). That's identical to last week's measurement. I seem to have a struck a very nice balance this year: my gains have been quiet consistant, and I've put on very little fat.
This week's tape measurements (as measured by the MyoTape) show some nice improvements: my arms and chest are both up another quarter of an inch, and my quads are just shy of 25.75 inches (but they didn't quite hit the mark). Next week for sure! I added a quarter inch to my hips, and that's due to glute growth--almost certainly a direct result of those brutal Bulgarian drop sets. My waist size did not increase. Yay!
Overall measurement progress report: over the past ten weeks I've added three quarters of an inch to my forearms, 1.5 inches to my arms, 1.75 inches to my quads, a half inch to my calves and 2 inches to my chest.
All my stats, past and present, can always be found on the stats page.
The forum reputation debate rages on! Please take a few minutes to aquaint yourself with the new reputation system that we are trying out on the forum. I really want to know what you think, so don't be shy--speak up and post your opinion!
Please join me in welcoming Aram "Mastover" Hamparian aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor! I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum. Feel free to drop in and ask any questions you have, or just say hello.
December 6, 2008
Yesterday's workout (delts/traps/calves) was extremely good. I had a lot of energy and I felt very strong. Here's the workout I'll be doing until my bulk ends later this month:
DELTS/TRAPS
- 3 x 10-12 Arnold presses
- 4 x 10-12 Seated DB laterals
- 3 x failure/failure/failure Lying low-angle DB laterals (triple drop sets)
- 4 x 25 Power shrugs
CALVES
- 4 x 15-20 Dumbbell single leg calf raises
- 3 x failure Standing calf raises
I posted one new photograph, a delts progress photo, in my journal last night.
The forum reputation debate rages on! Please take a few minutes to acquaint yourself with the new reputation system that we are trying out on the forum. I really want to know what you think, so don't be shy--speak up and post your opinion!
I've got some housecleaning to do this morning, and then I have to go get a haircut. Lisa is out of town, so I get to do everything myself. Drat. Oh well, at least it's Saturday--enjoy!
Please join me in welcoming Aram "Mastover" Hamparian aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor! I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum. Feel free to drop in and ask any questions you have, or just say hello.
December 5, 2008
Yesterday's workout (back, biceps and traps) was good, but not great. It was the first workout on this bulk that felt "forced". I think the reason for that is two-fold. First of all, my body is in shock from the all-new workouts I've been doing this week. My legs are still quite sore from Monday's workout, and my pecs and triceps are more sore than they've been in a long time. I also had a pretty busy and stressful day yesterday, and was feeling rather tired just before my workout. Once I got going with my training I felt pretty good, but by as the workout drew to a close I felt very gassed. Despite this, I fought through it and got it done!
I really wanted to deadlift, but I need to let my lower back have a few more weeks before I start hitting it again. Anyway, here's the back/biceps/traps workout I'll be doing for the next three weeks:
BACK/TRAPS
3 x 10-12 Hang cleans/power shrugs (supersets)
3 x 12 Bent-over barbell rows
3 x Failure/failure/failure wide-grip lat pulldowns (triple drop sets)
BICEPS
3 x 10-12 Machine preacher curls
3 x Failure/failure/failure/failure/failure "Down the rack" alt. DB curls (quintuple drop sets)
3 x Failure Bodyweight chin-ups (supinated grip)
Today I'll be working my delts, traps and calves. I can't believe that after today's workout I only have three weeks left to go in this year's bulk. The time has gone by so quickly!
Yesterday I mentioned that I was considering implementing a user "reputation" system on the forum. The purpose of the rep system is allow our members to provide positive feedback to other members whom they have found to be helpful. It is also my hope that people will become more active on the forum in an effort to increase their reputation score. The JSF forums are seeing near-record traffic right now, but the number of posts are down. I want to encourage lots of conversation and lively discussion! The reputation system does have the potential to be problematic, and so I have done what I can to address those issues in advance. I implemented the system yesterday, and would like to give it a trial run. You can learn all about the system (and how to opt out if you would rather not participate) in this thread. Regardless of if you are for this, against this or neutral/undecided, it's very important that you let me know what you think. Thanks, and I hope you enjoy this new feature.
Please join me in welcoming Aram "Mastover" Hamparian aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor! I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum. Feel free to drop in and ask any questions you have, or just say hello.
December 4, 2008
Today is my back and biceps workout. Thankfully my lower back has been 100% pain-free all week. I'm surprised by that, as I tweaked the pulled muscle again pretty good while working out last Thursday. Even though I'm not experiencing any pain right now, I'm going to play it safe and not attempt heavy deadlifts for a couple more weeks. I want to make absolutely sure the pulled muscle is fully healed up before I put a heavy load directly on it again. I do feel like I can handle cleans, so I'm going to do some hang cleans supersetted with barbell rows today. I think I'll also throw some wide-grip lat pulldown drop sets in there. I need to take 15 minutes at some point before today's workout and get everything planned out. This is the back/bicep workout I'll be doing for the final four weeks of my bulk, and I want to make it a great one!
I've been toying with the idea of implementing a "user reputation" system on the forum. Some of you may be familiar with this concept, as many other forums use it. Basically the forum reputation system allows users to say "thanks" to members they have found helpful by adding points to their forum "reputation". Users can also add comments when they "rep" someone. A user's "power" (that is, the amount of weight that they have when they decide to "rep" another user) is based on a variety of factors, such as how long they have been a member, the number of posts they've made and the number of rep points they've been awarded by others. If I decide to implement this feature, I'll post a thread with all the information you need to learn how to use it. It's actually quite simple, and would provide some well-deserved recognition to those members who take time to help others.
Please join me in welcoming Aram "Mastover" Hamparian aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor! I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum. Feel free to drop in and ask any questions you have, or just say hello.
December 3, 2008
I came up with a somewhat "controversial" chest/triceps workout for the final four weeks of my bulk. Why did I label it "controversial"? Mainly because I've included some decline bench press work and some smith machine bench press work. Some people are not big fans of these exercises. I'll explain my reasoning in a moment, but first here is the workout:
CHEST
- 3 x 10-12 Flat smith machine bench press
- 3 x failure/failure/failure Decline DB bench press (triple drop sets)
- 3 x failure/failure/failure/failure Cable crossover (quad drop sets)
TRICEPS
- 3 x 10-12 Lying ez-bar "touch and go" triceps extensions
- 3 x failure/failure/failure Tricep rope pressdowns (triple drop sets)
- 3 x failure/failure/failure/failure decline skull crushers (quad drop sets)
I think this workout is going to require some explanation, so I'll start with an overview of the workout and then address some of the exercise choices individually...
As you may have already gathered from looking at my bulking workouts, when it comes to intensity techniques I'm a big fan of short rest intervals, supersets and drop sets. I think giant sets have their place--and I did do some giant sets on this bulk--but I find that supersets and drop sets are better mass builders. I say that based on my own individual response, so my opinion is far from scientific. You may find quite the opposite, so I encourage each of you to experiment with different intensity techniques to see what works best for you.
So, as you can see, I've decided that for chest and triceps I'm going to focus on utilizing drop sets for the final four weeks of my bulk. The basic workout structure is mirrored for both chest and triceps muscle groups: I start with a good solid mass-building exercise in the 10-12 rep range, follow that with three super-intense triple drop sets and then finish off with another three drop sets, only these are quad drop sets. Do I smell burnt toast?
OK, now I'd like to talk about some of my exercise choices...
First, let's address my decision to use the smith machine for flat bench press. While smith machine work will never form the foundation of my training (I'm a big believer in free weights), I do believe that it has its place. I've not done any smith machine work at all on this bulk, and I do like to utilize the smith occasionally for a change. I made some good gains on my 2006 bulk using the smith alongside my core free weight work, and I expect that a month from now my chest measurement will reinforce my point that the smith can be an extremely effective mass-building tool.
The next exercise I selected was decline DB press. Again, here we have an exercise that is less than popular, but I don't really care. While flat and incline press are my "base" pressing moves, I feel that tossing in some decline work for a change is a good thing to do. As I mentioned in my journal a few weeks ago, I remain unconvinced that the decline press specifically targets the lower chest; however, I do feel that it can be an effective overall pec builder.
The last exercise that requires some discussion is the lying ez-bar "touch and go" triceps extensions. I've done these in the past, and they are fantastic! You perform this exercise by lying flat on the floor with the ez-curl bar behind your head (NOTE: use multiple small plates of 25 pounds or less to increase the ROM); reach back, grab the bar and bring the bar up over your head (I stop just short of lock-out to keep tension on the triceps); give the triceps a good hard squeeze and then slowly lower the bar until it is resting on the floor. The idea is to have to "break" the bar off the floor on each rep. With this exercise there can be no momentum, no body english and no cheating; because of this, you will probably find that you have to use less weight than you might use for standing ez-bar french curls.
I posted one new picture in my journal last night, a tricep shot with my arm measuring 18.25".
The obvious thrust of this morning's discussion is a point I've made over and over again (but it needs repeating): learning from others is important, but it's up to you to experiment and see what works best for you.
I'm off from training today, and the rest will be very welcome. My leg workout on Monday destroyed my legs and glutes, and I'm quite literally having trouble walking.
Please join me in welcoming Aram "Mastover" Hamparian aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor! I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum. Feel free to drop in and ask any questions you have, or just say hello.
December 2, 2008
If you missed yesterday's update, you will probably want to go check it out--it was a big one! I did a side-by-side photo comparison using yesterday's monthly progress photos and my 2008 bulk starting photos, and I also announced JSF's newest sponsor, Aram "Mastover" Hamparian.
This week I'm changing all my workouts around; these are the workouts I'll be doing for the final four weeks of my bulk. The workouts I performed over the past five weeks were some of the toughest I've ever come up with, but I'm going to step it up another notch and make these new "end of bulk" workouts even more brutal. I am 100% up for the challenge: at this point in my bulk I'm in terrific shape, I'm both mentally and physically stronger than I've been in a long time and I've developed an incredible amount of momentum over the past nine weeks.
My back is feeling quite good, but as I learned last week it needs a little more time before I'll be ready to squat heavy again. That's OK, I can work around this little problem and still make my workouts very, very tough. So, here's what I did for legs yesterday:
- 1x25/1x20/2x10-12/2x4-6/1x2 (1RM weight) Vertical leg press, weight increased each set
- 3 x 8-10 Stiff leg deadlifts
- 3 x Failure/Failure/Failure - DB Bulgarian split squats (triple drop sets)
- 3 x Failure/3 x Failure - Leg extensions/Lying leg curls (supersets)
The key to this workout is intensity! I took just 1 minute of rest between each set, and 2 minutes of rest between each exercise.
As I mentioned in my forum journal yesterday, Bulgarian split squats are a very tough exercise under "normal" circumstances, but they become downright evil when doing triple drop sets to failure (drop sets have no rest between each drop). It's also significant that my legs were pre-exhausted from the leg presses and deadlifts. After the first triple drop set I felt like dying; after the second set I started to wish I actually had died on the first set; by the end of the final set I had to fight the urge to curl up into a tight ball and go to my happy place.
I've experienced some nice quad and hamstring growth over the past two months, but I expect that this leg workout is going to really force some new muscle. If you are looking to add some mass to your legs and are eating a caloric surplus (I would not recommend this workout if you are cutting), give this workout a try and see what you think. Keep the intensity levels high and don't wimp out on the short rest intervals (you'll be tempted, believe me).
Today I'll be working my chest and triceps. I have not planned the workout yet, so I'll post it tomorrow.
Have a great day--as always, I'll see you tomorrow!
December 1, 2008
I've got a huge update today, and lots to cover. Let's jump right into it!
I took my monthly progress pictures this morning, and I'm pretty pleased with the progress I've made so far on this bulk. Over the past two months I've made noticeable improvements to all my muscle groups, and my fat gains have been far less than any of my previous bulks.
Over the past two months I've added a total of 15.8 pounds, of which 11.4 pounds is lean mass. That's only a 4.4 pound fat gain (for more detailed stats, check yesterday's update).
I thought it would be interesting to compare my 2008 bulk starting picture to this morning's pictures.
The face-on shots show an overall increase in size and some nice growth on my quads, lats, chest and shoulders--even my stubborn traps have shown some improvement (but need a lot more!) The two inches I've added to my chest over the past couple of months are very apparent in the profile photos; this is something I'm extremely happy about because my chest was looking pretty weak. The profile photos also shows some nice delt, arm and hamstring improvement:
|
October 1, 2008 |
December 1, 2008 |
October 1, 2008 |
December 1, 2008 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
2008 Bulking Progress (Front) |
2008 Bulking Progress (Profile) |
|||
I feel that this has been my most successful bulk yet, and I'm going to work my butt off for the final four weeks and finish very strong. If I can hang on to the mass I've added (and the mass I will pack on this month) while I'm getting my six-pack dialed-in on my upcoming cut, I believe that I will attatin my most balanced and aesthetic physique yet.
I've got a very exciting announcement this morning! Over the past few weeks I've made mention that JSF has a new sponsor coming aboard. This gentleman needs no introduction to many of you, as he's been on the JSF forums helping people for years. I'm, of course, talking about Aram "Mastover" Hamparian!
As many of you know, I've already had the honor and privilege of working with Aram several times. In fact, it was under Aram's wing that I achieved what was by far the best physique of my life. You may recall that my 2006 bulk was successful in many ways, but I also ballooned up to 236 pounds and 19% body fat. The first time I worked with Aram was my post-bulk 2007 cutting phase. My goal on that cut was to reduce my body fat from 19% to 6% while preserving as much lean mass as possible. Six months and 50 pounds later I reached that goal. Aram was the mastermind behind the diet and training program that allowed me to make this transformation:
|
January 1, 2007 |
July 1, 2007 |
|
 |
 |
Aram is a USBF & NBI Professional Natural bodybuilder with over 25 years experience. His depth of knowledge and vast experience are only exceeded by his humility. Over the years our trainer/client relationship has evolved into a genuine friendship and a very strong mutual respect. I can tell you from firsthand experience that when you work with Aram you can count on friendly, knowledgeable and professional assistance without any attitude or "chest pounding"--you have my word on that. I endorse Aram and his training services completely, wholeheartedly and without any caveats. Want to lose fat, pack on muscle, get ready for a bodybuilding contest or undergo a complete body recomposition? If you are willing to work hard, Aram will get you there. Aram has the knowledge and experience to help anyone from total beginner to seasoned veteran reach his or her physique and/or health goals. Each person's program is 100% custom and unique to that individual and his or her goals, and you will receive the personal attention that you deserve. I know who I'll be hiring for my next cut!
Aram's rates are already extremely low, but during the entire month of December he's discounted those rates by 15%! Please check out his web site at www.mastover.com for details on all his services.
I've placed the Official "Personal Training with Aram Hamparian" Review and Discussion thread in the Fat Loss forum, so please feel free to drop in and join me in welcoming Aram aboard as an Official JSF Sponsor!
Back to comments index
Web design and development by Sverre Sjothun
